Hi, On your bass drum and mounted tom that you posted.These are 1960's M.I.J. by Pearl not by Star.What leads me to this is the t-rods and claws on the bass drum,the tom mount also the spur mounts these are all Pearl made.You drums could be one of 50 names that Pearl sold under in the U.S..Also a few other points on the bass drum the mounting screws on the lugs look to be the bigger ones most likey 1/4 20 thread Pearl used these types Star made drums used a small type of screw 4.5 metric thread.Also on the T-rods Star ones were a metric thread and thinner than the Pearl. Ones Pearl made threads were also a odd size metric thread its somewhat like 5.5 or 1/4 20 thread..If you would remove one of the lugs it will say Pearl more then likey..The tom mount is a Pearl not Star..The wrap is a rare one to fine i know of no one that makes a wrap like that today..I would keep the drums and look on Ebay or check the Pearl vintage drum forum to see if you could fine the missing floor tom..If you are missing any parts for the drums you have i will more than likey have them....Mikey

Mikey,

So long as they are original, are the rod threads a reliable way to determine if it is Pearl or Star? I may have to re-investigate what I have.

John

I can't speak for OSMO Polyx oil for treating the inside of the bass shell, but I applied 3+ coats of laquer to the interior of all my '66 MIJ shells as suggested by jonnistix and others, and the results were fantastic. I actually purchased one spray can and it treated the three drums 12/14/22 easily with some to spare. The can cost under $5 at my local hardware store. The spray laquer was really easy to use, the coats were even, nothing to clean-up, and the can stores easily. It was strongly suggested to use laquer, or another non-polyurethane sealant, to preserve the warm tone of the aged wood while improving the sound projection. I get plenty of projection from my kit and am not drowned out by the rest of the band...I don't play jazz, but alt-country, a sort of country meets grunge style.

Regarding heads, Aquarian texture coated with z100 coating, were recommended to me and sound FANTASTIC. I paid $9.25 for my 14" and $11 for my 12".

BTW, congrats on finding that really cool wrap. I'll look fantastic once it's polished up...and the sound is happy, happy, joy, joy.

Peace & rhythm,

Brian

PS. Here's a pic of my kit under poor lighting at its last gig.

[IMG]http://i1208.photobucket.com/albums/cc379/briandambrosiadonner/1966%20Star%20Drum%20Kit%20Project/2e4e0b3c.jpg[/IMG]

@ drummer John

Yes she sure is I simply loved the look of that one

Thanks for the website it should help.

I am not in a huge hurry to get the floor tom, but I suppose if I see one I will get it.

Thats awesome you will be done with school. You are going to teach your kids some drums right? Yes Sir :-D

I actually wasn't able to get to working on them yesterday. Tomorrow I have another free night and than this weekend when I get home from work will be a good time.

@Mikey

Hey thanks for the info... most of what I was riding on was the star kick pedal. Any idea on the type of wood it is? I am missing a couple of parts. I am between the kits missing 8 t-rods (they work for both the kits so you are probably right that it is a pearl) I am missing a floor tom leg... Should I just buy 3 new ones? I am missing some screws, but that is just a trip to the hardware store I guess. I am missing some bass spurs.

What should I do with the bass drum lugs that appear to be stripped can they be fixed or do I need to get working/new lugs?

When I get to working on them I can give you some more details on what I need to replace and find. (like pics) and I also will look at the lug and get a picture to you.

@Brian

Oh thanks for the advice I will try a sealant spray can it sounds a lot cheaper. What brand did you use or does it not matter much?

What did you use on your kick drum for heads?

You live near Pomona CA? My Grandma lives there :D

I will have to come here you play next time I visit the area. ;)

Thats a nice kit you have there.

Thanks for the kind words. I'll be tackling a well pitted chrome snare next. We'll see how that ends up. My band is called Los whateveros. We've got gigs lined up this weekend & march in Upland, then in Claremont in April. PM me if you're gona visit & I'll give you more details.

Peace & rhythm,

Brian

So I have started taking apart the drums and I took the first lug off and bad new mikey777... no pearl logo or anything on the inside here are the pics if it helps identification at all.

Are we still thinking its pearl or no?

So I took everything off the kick drum and de-lugged it and de-hard weared it (not sure if those are words?) Toilet

So it is a 14x20 shell. How do I tell if it is out of round I can't really tell?

I also took off a piece of hardware I didn't notice before it. I put a few pictures of it up. It is rectangular. It has two holes in the side there is a screw in one and it looks like there was once a second screw on the other side. On the top and bottom there are holes (like a tom leg mount). I am thinking maybe a cymbal arm?

I also took a few photos of the wood to help see if it will help identify it.

Meini,Yes the bass drum lug you posted is a Pearl made one,like i said most of the time the lugs would say Pearl on the inside but sometimes they did not.Some may even have a 2 numbers as a mark i can't see by the photo..On the other part you postrf again Pearl made you are right its a "L" arm cymbal mount for the bass drum..This part may also have 2 numbers inside as a mark or none at all.....Mikey

Ok Thanks Mikey :-)

The information is appreciated. I didn't see any numbers, but I can take a closer look. But maybe its meant to be a pearl mystery kit... hehehe :-D

So I am going to order some heads tonight hopefully. So for batter and resonant side I should get single ply heads? So get some Jammin Sams heads and then what should I do for the kick drum? The evans look nice but are expensive.

I have some money for this project. I just don't have the cash to do buy expensive heads for the whole kit since I am trying to save for college.

I am liking Osokabops method do I have to use Ambassadors for it though?

Would it work with the Jammin Sams heads?

Also do 1ply heads break or dent faster than 2ply or three heads? I don't dent heads anymore and its been many years since I have broken one.

Also for vintage drums I guessing it is better not to have a whole in the front? My older brother is a recording engineer and he has told me its better for recording if the kick has a whole and the best sound is 1/3 sized whole in the center. Thats modern drums though. I know when he records kick he likes to stick an Re-20 half in and half out to get the total sound and then a subkick on.

Also How do you recommend tuning these bass drums... I love the sound of deep solid kick.... which I am guessing I won't get from these guys (the sound of smaller kicks will grow on me) On my current set I have followed the advice of an older drummer who told me to tune as low as could to have the head stay on and not wrinkle when the beater hits it. I also know that having a loser head means a much higher chance of the head being dented probably why my kick head is... DOH

I know for a lot of Hip Hop and R&B drumming they actually use very small kick drums and tune them super low.

Whatever you guys think though ;-)

Ended up having a busy weekend... I was able to get all the metal in the dawn a couple of days ago tonight I shall scrub.... I am also going to see if I can use blow dryer to try and fold a piece of the wrap back. :-)

Thanks,

matthias

It's a personal preference between single ply or double ply heads. If I want more of a 'rock' sound, I'm usually gonna want to go with Emperors, but if I want more of a jazz sound or what we might call a 'vintage' sound, I'd want to go with Ambassadors. Either will sound good, just a little different. So it depends on what you want to hear out of your drums.

I dont know about the Jammin Sam heads. They could just be unbranded heads, but they could also be the cheapies that come on new drum sets. I'm a little suspicious.

Either way, here's a great deal for you to consider:

Batter: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/drums-percussion/remo-ambassador-x-standard-drumhead-pack-buy-3-get-a-free-14-inch-head/713153000000000?src=3WFRWXX&ZYXSEM=0&CAWELAID=543164355

Reso: http://www.zzounds.com/item--ATTDHAPACKI

For around $60 you have new heads all around (except for bass drum) and a spare snare head.

For the bass drum I would consider springing for either a Remo Powerstroke 3 or an Aquarian SK1